


Post Award Season Drag

by gabewrites



Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018) Actor RPF
Genre: Friendship/Love, M/M, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-18
Updated: 2019-03-25
Packaged: 2019-11-24 00:47:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18159242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gabewrites/pseuds/gabewrites
Summary: Rami finally catches the award season cold and with the season over, he's extremely bored and alone. Until Joe comes over to keep him company.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is purely soft and platonic in this lil part so ye
> 
> *the second part they kiss which is argueably Gay of me to make them do so if u dont want that skip the 2nd part

Awards season did a number on everyone's immune system, but Rami had managed to expertly steer clear. It was the  _ post-award season  _ drag that was quick to knock him down.

Apparently his body had decided that after all important appearances were over for the time being, all immune defenses could be lowered for the time being. At least his body was being lymphatically considerate. 

His ideal form of celebration was not slumping on the couch with lukewarm and subpar tea- he certainly hadn't pictured this while holding his Oscar- but it was the best he could do under the current conditions. He frowned at the bottom of his mug when he finished his...2nd, maybe 3rd...cup of tea. The honey wasn't doing anything promising for his scratchy throat, and nothing would stop the persistent sniffle interrupting the throwaway movie he had put on in an attempt to distract himself.

He pulled out his phone and opened his texts, looking for a new distraction. The last person he had texted was Joe, so he became the victim of Rami’s miserable ramblings. A quick text told Joe that he was still getting over that cold. Another quick text told Joe that Rami was going to run out of tea at this rate. And another, dreaded, third long text told Joe that Rami was bored, didn’t even have any more good movies to watch, and couldn’t remember the last time he ate. 

Rami threw his phone on the pillow next to himself on the couch and let out a long and impatient sigh while he flopped himself into a more horizontal position. He probably looked dramatic, in fact, he was aware he did, but he was praying for his phone to buzz and relieve him from boredom. He sunk into the couch momentarily, running his hands through his hair and waiting. 

**_BZZZZZZT_ **

Even though he was waiting for it, the sound startled him, and with perfect timing a sneeze caught him off guard as he tried to sit up and grab his phone. He grabbed a tissue and looked extremely unamused as he added to the uncomfortable redness around his nose. 

**_BZZZT BZZZT BZZZT_ **

It took Rami a moment to realize that he wasn’t being spam texted, but called by a panicked Joe who was ready to mother hen him to health like his life depended on it. Rami, unsuspecting, picked up the phone with a sniffle and started with a congested, “Hello-” that Joe quickly interrupted. 

_ “I’m on my way over- and I’ll pick you up some tea, too- what kind do you drink?” _ Rami had to pause for a hot second to register what Joe was saying. Joe had started rambling off about something but Rami coughed and took a sip of his tea without the faintest idea what he was listening to. 

“Joe-”

_ “-and I could stop and rent a movie or something, or maybe we could just find something to watch on netflix- wait what tea did you say you like?”  _

“JOE!” Rami immediately regretted raising his voice, and he made a face of disgust at the mucous in his throat. He scoffed at his own condition before using the attention he had finally been given. He had to play nice, and that meant telling Joe he didn’t need to come over even though Rami really wanted him to come over and keep him some company. “Just green tea is fine- but you know you don’t have to, right?” 

Joe was already in his car, and Rami could hear the key turn in the ignition. He couldn’t help but smile just a little. “This is non-negotiable, Rami Malek, I’ll see you in 10 minutes.” 

“Thanks, Joey.” Rami, though nasally, had a warm tone flowing through his voice, and his smiled stayed long after the call clicked off. He kicked back onto the couch before realizing he’d have to get up to unlock the door for Joe. Instead he sat up and looked into his empty cup with a frown. He did not want to make the effort to get more tea. 

Instead he got up and unlocked the door before retreating back to the couch. He realized he probably looked miserable, and he almost made an effort to clean himself up before reminding himself that Joe wouldn't care. Rami also realized that he might have been more comfortable if he got out of the jeans he had been wearing for undeniably too long. Maybe he really was a mess that needed some help.

He was looking into his mug of tiny tea leaves swirling in not even a sip of tea at the bottom when Joe knocked at the door loudly, opening the door before getting a response. He was holding a grocery bag in his hand and looked somewhat determined. He frowned a little when he looked at Rami. “How are you feeling?” Joe walked over to sit next to Rami on the couch without a second thought, digging through the bag that he had sat in his lap. 

Rami rose an eyebrow at him when he pulled out a cheap bottle of iced tea with a guilty smile. “Nice tea, Joe.” Rami laughed and noticed Joe crack a bigger smile too at hearing the sarcasm in his nasally voice.

“Well..i stopped at a gas station and realized that wasn't exactly the prime tea destination- but if you’re feeling adventurous I can throw it in the microwave.” Joe grinned. 

“No!” Rami snatched the tea from his hand, knowing perfectly well that if he didn’t put a stop to that thought Joe would be running to destroy his microwave. “It’s alright, it’s the thought that counts.” Even without the heat of his past tea, the taste was good, and the freezing cold soothed his throat momentarily in a new and welcomed way. 

Rami almost choked on his tea when Joe slapped a hand down on his thigh, looking outright disgusted with Rami. He froze mid-sip of tea and managed not to spit the last sip all over himself. “Why are you wearing  _ jeans?”  _ He seemed to shudder just saying it, his hand recoiling away from the offending denim. “This is unacceptable- where are your sweatpants?” Rami put the tea down on the table in front of them and looked down at Joe’s pants with accusation in his eyes. 

“You’re wearing jeans, too.” 

“We’re both breaking the lazy lounging law.” A look of false fear filled Joe’s eyes, an edge of comedy on his tongue. 

Before Rami could respond, he was laughing as Joe darted for his bedroom, obviously finding the dresser. Rami could hear the drawers being opened frantically, some clothes needlessly thrown around for dramatic effect while Joe made his way to the spot where comfy pants belonged. Joe returned from the bedroom with hilariously messy hair, a dumb smile on his face, and two pairs of sweatpants. One pair was on him to replace his jeans, and the other hanging from his arm. 

Rami sipped his tea slowly and reached out to accept the offering of sweatpants to change into. “Glad to know you fit my sweatpants.” Rami sighed as if he had to work up the energy to switch pants. Maybe he did. But his thoughts were interrupted when Joe got another idea.

“You’re going to need a blanket too.” Joe was quickly charging back to the bedroom to look for a comfy blanket for Rami to wrap himself in. Rami made sure to remind himself to thank Joe later for all the thought he felt the need to put into that. He also managed to exert enough energy to get those sweatpants on. He was surprisingly worn out from that simple task. 

“Joe, you know, I’m fine- there’s probably a blanket out here-” It was truly too late, as Joe had already decided to wrap Rami in a cozy blanket from behind the couch. “Thanks, Joey.” He really did smile at that, happy that someone was around to make him feel at least a little cared for, maybe provide a pleasant and humorous distraction. Joe always was a good friend when it came to this sort of stuff. 

Speaking of Joe, he finally slumped onto the couch next to Rami and grabbed the TV remote. “Netflix?” Rami shrugged and let his weight fall onto the back of the couch, laying down in a sort of awkward way. He didn’t even see what Joe decided to put on, he was busy being overwhelmed with how tired he was quickly feeling. He had to stop himself from nodding off when he almost folded in on himself and fell asleep. 

“Woah there- maybe you should just get comfy and take a nap, Ram.” Joe offered a supportive hand on Rami’s shoulder to stop him from plummeting face down into the couch as he clicked on a random show that he knew Rami had already finished once over. It would only end up serving as comfortable background noise now anyway. 

“I’m...good- just ti...red- I’m awake!.” Rami was not convincing as his increasingly snotty voice tapered off and slurred tiredly. Joe laughed at the way a very sleepy Rami wiped his nose on his sleeve. Joe also reached for a tissue to let Rami blow his nose. He was convinced that there should have been an award for being close enough friends to help your friend blow his nose.There was a level of care and dedication there. 

The breath was briefly knocked out of him when Rami fell against his chest, still awake, but dead weight as far as his level of effort was concerned. Joe just smiled and giggled softly at Rami sniffling weakly and half-asleep. He carefully lowered himself onto the couch, trying not to disturb Rami and draping the blanket over them craftily. “Get some sleep, dork- you need it.”

Rami curled into Joe's chest and found himself getting closer to sleep, surely thanks to the warmth Joe gave off and the warmth of the blanket covering them. “You...didnfft....” His voice was slow, and muffled in Joe's shirt. “You didn't come ovfer to sleepf.” He tried minimally to fight back, grabbing Joe's arm and almost mumbling something before slow, soothing circles rubbed on his back nearly knocked him out. 

It only took a few more minutes of gentle back rubs, a hand briefly running through his hair, and Rami was finally lulled to sleep. He was really out, and Joe was sure he was in desperate need of the rest he was about to get.

With nothing left to do, Joe found himself getting drowsy as well, the hand that absentmindedly moved in circles finally stopping as he fell asleep with his arms holding Rami in place. The TV dimly lit the room as the sun set, and the static noise was the only thing in the room next to their soft and peaceful breathing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The warm sort of glow that the sunlight casts over everything it can reach adds a layer of wonder to waking up in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my name's arin and i have feelinGS

Neither of them had planned in advance to sleep through the night- they hadn’t really planned to sleep at all- but the rest proved to be much needed by both. They’d slept soundly, and the only thing willing to wake them was the inevitable rise of the sun that peaked through the windows. The thin curtains muted the warmth just slightly, but the bright piercing light still found its way to Joe, soft enough to tap his eyelids open. It took a moment to regain context, but he felt his fingers slid against a soft shirt that wasn’t his, and the comfortable weight of Rami pressing on his chest. 

His arms were still around Rami, their sleeping position not much changed from the early evening before. Joe was pleasantly awake within minutes, but Rami stayed deeply buried in warm morning sleep for a while longer. Joe couldn’t bring himself to mind when Rami seemed to nuzzle his face in the space between Joe’s shoulder and the couch. He laughed when he came out of sleepy haze, holding Joe’s arm tighter than he could have in his sleep. Joe couldn’t knock the smile off of his own face. “Good morning, sleepy head.” Joe laughed when Rami sniffled loudly before lifting himself up.

Their faces were quite close when Rami’s eyes met Joe’s, but there was more humor in it than anything else for the time being. Rami went briefly cross-eyed staring at his own curls that fell across his forehead. Joe stared at the curls that were sticking up elsewhere. He found the messy pile of curls on his friend’s head pretty charming, even with the still present red nose. Maybe that was charming, too, in a roundabout way. 

The sun got caught between each of Rami’s eyelashes, it highlighted every stray hair, and it left half of his face shining like gold and the other eclipsed in shadow. Regardless of the sniffles, the red nose, the droopy eyelids- he was undeniably stunning in the light. His smile had captured Joe’s eyes until they wandered back upward, catching Rami’s almost questioning glance. 

“Are you admiring something?” Rami laughed and sniffed again, cringing at the pressure in his sinuses. “I think I’m still looking pretty rough.” Joe’s smile didn’t waver. If anything it grew. 

“I know you’re sick-” Joe brushed Rami’s hair off of his forehead with a new softness, as if Rami was more fragile that particular morning. Despite the obvious sinus congestion, Joe was enamoured all of the sudden, his hand raising to hold one side of Rami’s face. “It doesn’t really matter, though.” His thumb brushed gently over Rami’s cheekbone, and Rami went silent at the touch, eyes warm and lips parted in dumbfoundment. 

Rami’s eyes flitted down quickly. “Joe, what are you talking about I know I look-”

“Beautiful.” The words were spoken quietly, but Rami’s eyes were back on Joe. There was a level of true wonderment as their eyes met again. Joe ran a finger down the bridge of Rami’s nose, along the curve of his bottom lip. 

It was ever-evident that they were slipping closer together, and Joe felt his face flush when his other hand was on Rami’s waist, pulling them impossibly closer. There was something cautious about the way their foreheads pressed together in a moment of stillness, only soft breathing to be heard.

Their eyes were long closed, and though Rami was already a makeshift space heater, the warmth between the two had become more apparent. Joe felt his heart stop when Rami pressed their lips together. Rami thought his heart was going to beat out of his chest.

It could have been described as passionate, but it was slow, more caring. Years of caring and knowing each other all in one place. They held each other for a moment, focusing more on that contact then their lips moving together. Their eyes stayed closed even when their lips parted. Rami silently grabbed the hand that was still resting on his face and moved it to his chest. Joe felt his stomach fill with butterflies as Rami’s heartbeat pulsed rapidly against his palm.  

Comfortable quietness filled the room, and Joe thought that the beat of Rami’s heart could lull him to sleep if he stayed still for long enough. His eyes closed as he ran a hand through Rami’s hair, the other still planted firmly over that fast paced heart beat. Joe was slipping into a calmed and relaxed state, thinking about a lazy morning nap or just relaxing- maybe kissing Rami again.

A sniffle from Rami broke the silence, but not one from sickness. Joe looked startled when he saw Rami start to cry, sitting up and taking his hands away. He assumed that he had made a mistake until Rami threw his body forward into a hug, still crying and gripping onto Joe with a force that made him shake. Joe could still feel Rami’s heart beating against his chest. Frantic with want and need. His sniffles got louder and he help onto Joe tighter.

Joe hugged back without a thought, feeling his own eyes start to well up with tears he didn't expect. He rubbed his hand gently over Rami’s back. He was about to ask if Rami was alright, if he needed anything, if he wanted to talk- but Rami beat him to it with a quiet, breathless admission.

_ “Please, don’t leave.” _ Rami hadn't even planned for those words to come tumbling out, though they rang true. He could have said thank you, or I love you, or anything else but instead he found himself never wanting to let go. He closed his eyes and concentrated on burying his head into Joe's shoulder. 

Joe felt a pang in his chest, and he swallowed hard as a tear fell from his eye without warning. “Rami…-" Joe pulled away from the hug abruptly, tilting Rami’s face up gently by his chin. “It’s been years.” Joe laughed softly, hoping those words reminded Rami of how long it had been since they'd met, how many projects they'd worked on, how many times they had hung out afterwards. Joe never wanted that to end. “I'm never leaving.”

Rami blinked a few tears away and sighed. “I don't know why I said that, I'm sorry.” Rami laughed at himself while Joe wiped away some of the tears with a brush of his thumb. Rami caught Joe off guard by returning the favor, leaving them both laughing softly while a few stray tears ran down their faces. 

Joe put his arms out again, motioning for Rami to fall into them a second time. “Hey, don’t say sorry, come here. Joe spoke softly and pressed a kiss to Rami’s cheek before resting his head on his shoulder. One hand wandered back to Rami’s hair again almost reflexively. They held each other for a few minutes, however long felt right, before Rami pulled away, caught Joe’s face in his hands, and pressed their lips together again. Softly. Sweetly. Slowly.

He opened his eyes to look at Joe and smiled until Joe kissed him again, holding him by the shoulders. Now that they were both sitting up, it was easier to fall into, and they became entangled in each other to get as close as they could. Rami was halfway into Joe’s lap, and one of Joe’s legs was half way around Rami, and their lips- they moved slowly and calmly together. As if well practiced; nothing new. Rami felt a persistent warmth in his face when Joe made sure to kiss his cheek, his nose, his jawline, the corner of his mouth.

And one last, real, full kiss. One that would have knocked Rami off of his feet if he had been standing. One that they both treated as if it were their last, pouring everything they had into it Every raw emotion, every great achievement, and every egregious failure. Everything that couldn’t be expressed with words. When they pulled apart they just stared for a moment, longing to kiss again as if they’d never have the chance. 

They both ignored the glassy, wet appearance of their eyes. It was okay. 

Joe grinned, slapping a hand down on Rami’s thigh and looking towards the kitchen. “Coffee?” Rami laughed and gathered his blanket back from where it had fallen. 

“Well maybe if you would have picked up the right tea-” He elbowed Joe in the side, a soaring kind of feeling in his chest at the fact that nothing had changed. Every moment still felt the same as it had before. 

But now Joe could kiss Rami’s cheek and grab his hand, laughing as Rami let his blanket drag behind him on the way to the kitchen. 

**Author's Note:**

> I might write something fluffy kissy but i hope this is good fjdjfj
> 
> Edit: i made a writing blog on tumblr! If you ever wanna request i write something or talk to me, check out @gabewritesshit


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